CLUCK, CLUCK, CLUCK!!!
Today, Dan had an epiphany. I'm so proud of him!
This evening he comes in the house with a full carton of eggs, plus 6 more eggs on top of that.
"I think we should keep the chickens cooped up all the time." He said smugly.
I turned from my sink of dirty dishes and about fell over. My jaw hit the floor. "How many did we get?" I exclaimed.
"18! That means all but two laid today."
I thought perhaps our large number of eggs was due to the fact that no one can escape and play Easter Chicken on us. (I don't miss hunting for eggs around the barn at night.) But Dan made a better point.
He thinks our increase in eggs is due to the fact that since the chickens are stuck inside all the time now, they are eating only their laying feed ration, and hence cranking out the eggs.
Normally, our birds are out in the steer lot, eating bugs, grubs and steer corn...or the corn from the steer poo - it's gross I know, but it's true - and eating only some of their ration. A laying hen is fed a specific diet. You can buy the feed at feed stores, or make up your own like we do. Our chickens are fed corn (duh!) with bean meal, mineral mix and calcium carbonate. This "recipe" came from Gene Debruin, who I have talked about more than once in this blog, and who is an animal nutritionist. (Helps to know the right people!)
This logic makes a lot of sense to me.
Plus I feel like it's a win for me and Dan...finally...I mean, it's about stickin' time we won at something when it deals with these freaking birds....who make you feel like your crazy most of the time and we are always on the loosing team. Feels good to win one for once. Maybe we'll stay in the game a little longer now.
Dan says the other two hens better step it up. He wants a day where every single female produces an egg. He also wants so sell enough eggs to buy himself a new pick-up...thought
that day may be a long time coming!
...cluck... cluck... cluck...
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